The Mark Of The Quartered Circle
by Thanos6
Summary: A hopefully epic story, beginning with the origin of the Hands and going far, far beyond...
1. Origins in the Null

The Mark Of The Quartered Circle  
  
By Thanos6  
  
Hello everyone. I'm Thanos6. Some of you may recognize me as the author of the ongoing "Royalty Series" of Dragonball fanfics. A few of you may be reading my original superhero story "The Reformers." Well, I've decided to try my hand at writing a Super Smash Bros. Melee story.  
  
This begins as your typical 'origin' story, explaining how and why the Master Hand recruited the fighters that it did. Later on, however, it will branch out, and our heroes and villains will meet warriors from different games and do battle with them. Suggestions are always open. And at all times, my tongue will be planted firmly in my cheek.  
  
Some notes: I am using the Link and Zelda who appeared in the original two NES games, who are the descendents of the others. Also, as I have not played "Earthbound," "Ice Climbers," or the Fire Emblem series, please excuse me for any mistakes I may make regarding those games.  
  
I hope you enjoy.  
  
***  
  
Behold, if you will, Null.  
  
It cannot be Void, for that implies it once had value. It cannot be Abyss, for that implies something was once there. It can be only Null. It is not anything and never was anything and never will be anything.  
  
Unless.  
  
There is always an unless. Even out here, where there is no order and chaos has not found its way yet, there is an unless. Here, where strange nameless energies fluctuate not quite randomly, but neither in a pattern, there is an unless.  
  
There never will be anything…unless there is.  
  
They were not there an instant ago, and they may not be there an instant from now, but there they are. Two large shapes that looked exactly like two hands, wearing white gloves. In this place-that-was-not-a-place, where before there were no solid objects, now there were two.  
  
More accurately, two living beings. Two beings with minds and souls, formed from wild probability and weird forces. With whatever senses they possessed, they perceived the Null. One could not stand what it felt and fled into the reaches of the Null, its mind forever twisted by what it had sensed.  
  
Its sibling seemed to be made of sterner stuff. Resisting the corrupting effects, it instead conquered them. It harnessed the unknown powers and became the master of the Null. For how long it stayed there alone is unknown; it could have been microseconds or millennia. What is known is that eventually, even with its immense powers, it became bored.  
  
Turning its senses outside the Null, it discovered transfinite other continuums, continuums in which life was not the exception but the norm. And it became curious about those it took to be great warriors.  
  
It became fixated on one idea: battle. And it began to plan… 


	2. The Summonings, Part 1

Mario wiped the sweat off his brow, and emerged from the horrible dark cave he had been exploring for the past half-hour. Princess Peach Toadstool, who had been awaiting his appearance, had an anxious look on her face.  
  
"Is everything going to be OK?" she asked. He nodded, and closed the door to the basement behind him.  
  
"It should be fine. Most of the washers were getting rusty, so I had to replace them. But I think that should do it."  
  
She nodded satisfactorily. "Good. I was tired of all those gurgling noises through the pipes all night long. Thank you, Mario." She gave him a smile, and he blushed a tiny bit.  
  
"Think nothing of it, Your Highness. Has Wooster finished lunch yet?"  
  
She laughed that bright, clear laugh of hers. "Let's go see." They emerged from the basement of her castle and began to walk through the foyer to the kitchen, when they stopped. The foyer contained a skylight, enchanted so that during the day it always caught the light and focused it onto a painting of the sun on the floor.  
  
Except the sun painting was no longer there. It had been replaced by a red circle, split into four quadrants by a cross a bit to the lower-left of the center.  
  
"Princess…?"  
  
"I don't know what it is." The princess of the Mushroom Kingdom walked over to the new design and stepped on it. She promptly vanished.  
  
"Princess!" Mario shouted. Muttering under his breath, he adjusted his plumber's cap and followed her lead. A moment later, the foyer was empty.  
  
***  
  
King Bowser Koopa strode through the stone hallways of his castle, shaking his head. He'd just concluded an argument with his seven children Larry Koopa, Morton Koopa Jr., Wendy O. Koopa, Iggy Koopa, Roy Koopa, Lemmy Koopa, and Ludwig von Koopa.   
  
They'd come up with a plan to tunnel into Princess Toadstool's castle and conquer it from the inside. He'd vetoed that plan right off the bat; it didn't have the King Koopa sense of style that the Mushroom Kingdom had come to recognize and fear over the years.  
  
To think one of them would someday rule over the Turtle Tribe…! And they wondered why he'd left them out of his last couple of invasion plans.  
  
"Any idea what I should do with those brats?" he asked his advisor, the Magikoopa called Kamek, who was walking just behind him and to his right.  
  
"Perhaps, sire, you could allow me to teach them the magical arts, much as I taught them to you all those years ago. It instills a certain discipline."  
  
Bowser snorted. "Absolutely not! They're rowdy enough as it is without them knowing sorcery. Maybe I should let them try ruling over their own territories again. Or maybe appoint them as Vice-Presidents of the Apook Co." Kamek, having given his own two Koopabits, merely nodded in assent.  
  
"You may go now, Kamek. I'll yell for you if I need you." His advisor bowed and turned down a side hallway while the king continued to his throne room. He opened the door, and stopped.  
  
The design on his throne had changed. Usually the design was the emerald emblem of the Turtle Tribe. But now it was a crimson circle, broken into four pieces.  
  
"What in the name of Nimbus Land…?" Curiosity and annoyance mixed within him. He touched the new design with a claw.  
  
He disappeared, and the throne room was again empty.  
  
***  
  
The man-sized green dinosaur known as Yoshi, of the species also known as Yoshi, strolled through the forests of what was naturally called Yoshi's Island. Every now and then he would spy a delicious looking fruit and grab it with his long tongue.  
  
He wondered how his old friend Mario was doing. It had been a couple of weeks since he'd heard from him.  
  
Something caught his eye in the verdant foliage. It looked like someone had painted a shape on the trunk of one of the trees.  
  
Squeaking in curiosity, he approached to get a better look. It resembled a circle cut in four. He placed a paw on it, and vanished from the forest.  
  
***  
  
On DK Island, the current head of the clan Kong swung from vine to vine through the Kongo Jungle.  
  
Donkey Kong sighed. This daily patrol for Kremlings was the least favorite part of his day, but his grandfather Cranky Kong really got on his case whenever he forgot. And that cane of his could deliver quite a rap to the head.  
  
His ancestors were lucky. Cranky's archnemeses had been Mario and that exterminator Stanley. His father "Junior" was even luckier. After dueling with Mario, he had mostly stopped fighting. He spent most of his time nowadays on the road, racing or playing tennis to earn money for the family.  
  
But Donkey Kong? He had to take on King K. Rool and his entire army of Kremlings. Life wasn't fair.  
  
He reached the end of the current series of vines and dropped to the rainforest floor. He scampered along the path, keeping an eye out for a flash of reptilian scales, a clawed footprint or any other sign that Kremlings were nearby. Fortunately, in case there were, the barrels scattered at intervals along the path contained items that would be able to help.  
  
He stopped running and stared at one of the barrels. The containers usually had a pictogram portraying their contents on the outside. This one, however, had a mark he'd never seen before. A red circle split into four parts by a cross.  
  
What could be in it?  
  
He grabbed the barrel to break it and find out. But before he could, he disappeared from the jungle. 


	3. The Summonings, Part 2

"We haven't heard from Ganon lately, have we?" Link, the greatest warrior of the kingdom of Hyrule, asked.  
  
"Not since that mess with Koume and Kotake and the Oracles, no," replied Princess Zelda. "Why?"  
  
They were walking down a hall of North Castle, where the royal family of Hyrule lived. On either end, sunlight streamed through ancient stained glass windows, creating dazzling patterns of color on the grey stone walls.  
  
"Well, I was thinking that since we've worked so hard training that new legion of soldiers, maybe we could take the afternoon off...go have a picnic or something down by the lake."  
  
"I don't know..." the princess said hesitantly.  
  
"If any of Ganon's minions attack, Spryte can come warn us in less than five minutes. And this would be a perfect opportunity for you to show me that 'Sheik' spell of yours." She had recently rediscovered a magic spell used by her ancestor (also named Zelda) to help his ancestor (also named Link) fight Ganon (then known as Ganondorf). However, she hadn't told him yet what it did, teasing him with the knowledge.  
  
"Well, alright. I suppose a day off wouldn't hurt--" She stopped suddenly. "Link? Is it just me, or is some of the stained glass different?"  
  
The two walked to one of the windows. Some stained glass that represented the sun was gone, and in its place was crimson glass in the shape of a circle, split in four.  
  
"Odd..." said Zelda. She tapped it with a finger, and vanished.  
  
Muttering under his breath about another opportunity to kiss her gone, Link touched the circle as well, and disappeared.  
  
***  
  
The small planetoid, known only by its Galactic Federation ID tag of SR388, had once contained many odd lifeforms, not least of which were the life energy draining creatures known as Metroids. The Metroids had been used by the wicked Space Pirates of Zebes in several attempts to destroy the Galactic Federation.  
  
Now, though, the many lifeforms of SR388 had all been wiped out. All exterminated by one woman. One woman who had just returned to it.  
  
Samus Aran was undoubtedly the best bounty hunter in the galaxy; the only other bounty hunter with a 100% efficiency rate, Big-Time Brannigan, was assumed dead after his botched attempt on her life. She was able to set her own prices, and she set them high.  
  
But Metroid extermination was a job she'd do for free. She'd returned to SR388 to make sure she hadn't missed any. Setting her high-tech armor to scan for lifeforms, she entered one of the many subterranean tunnels that combed the planetoid.  
  
And stopped in her tracks.  
  
In front of her was a statue of a Chozo. The Chozo were an ancient race of avian-humanoids; they had constructed Samus's armor suit and the many weapons it could use, as well as infusing Samus with some of their own blood. This had given her strength and durability greater than that of other humans.  
  
On both Zebes and SR388, Chozo statues held add-ons to her armor. But this statue held an odd insigna; a red circle, quartered by two lines.  
  
Samus was not one to pass up a free upgrade. She reached out and grabbed the mysterious symbol, and vanished, leaving SR388 lifeless once more.  
  
***  
  
In Goldenrod City, on the island of Johto, a Pokemon of the species Pikachu darted into an alleyway. It was playing hide-and-seek with its master, Ash. It just hoped it didn't run into those nutty Team Rocket members Jessie, James, and Meowth again...  
  
"Pika?"  
  
On one of the brick walls, there was what appeared to be human graffiti in the shape of a red circle cut in four pieces. Most Pokemon are naturally curious, and this one was no exception. It pressed its forepaws against the graffiti, and promptly disappeared.  
  
***  
  
Captain Falcon eased his Falcon Flyer into the docking bay and sighed. It had been a hard day. He and his archrival, Samurai Goroh, had gotten into a brawl over the bounty on some cheating accountant from the Enronia system. Even worse, the numbers-cruncher had managed to escape in the confusion. All he'd earned were several bruises. Instead of returning to one of his many supply bases to rest, he'd decided just to spend the night in the nearest city.  
  
He exited his spacecraft, hoping that the hotel he'd reserved had a decent shower.  
  
As he left the docking bay, he noticed the door had some kind of odd red-circular-quartered design on it. He pushed on it to open the door, and a moment later, the Falcon Flyer had the docking bay all to itself.  
  
***  
  
Fox McCloud, leader of the Star Fox mercenary team and best pilot in the Lylat System (though Wolf O'Donnell would disagree), yawned heartily and attempted to get out of bed. He wasn't too successful, though, as he tripped over a pile of books and promptly fell flat on his face.  
  
He could already tell this would be a bad fur day. As if it wasn't bad enough that his girlfriend, Fara Phoenix, was visiting some friends on Katina...  
  
He took a quick shower, then checked for any messages that he might have missed while he was asleep. He had two, both from General Pepper, the top-ranking officer in the Cornerian military. The first concerned some trouble on a world at the edge of the system, Dinosaur Planet; there was no crisis there, not at the moment, but Pepper had some forebodings and wanted to give Fox the heads-up. The second message was about some new experimental weapons the military wanted Fox to test for them.  
  
Fox noted the address where he could pick up the equipment, then drove there and received it. It consisted of a few small devices that the pilot donned. The military scientist that gave it to him left the room; soon he'd be giving instructions to Fox over a PA system.  
  
While he waited, he noted a design painted onto one wall of the metallic shed that acted as the testing area. Bored, he lazily traced a finger around it: copied the design of a crimson circle, split into four pieces. Then he ran his hand over it, and vanished from Corneria.  
  
***  
  
He'd saved the world from a universal cosmic destroyer named Giygas, and yet he had a bedtime. Somethings, Ness thought, just weren't fair.  
  
He remembered that grand adventure fondly. He'd left his hometown of Onett, journeyed throughout much of Eagleland and beyond, gained psychic powers, and changed the course of history. Not bad for someone still in school.  
  
He wanted to stay up later, but there was no arguing with his parents. He rummaged around for his pajamas, but before he could put them on, something caught his eye. A weird pattern had appeared on his mirror.  
  
It was a circle, split in four pieces and colored scarlet. Puzzled, he reached out and touched it, and disappeared from Onett.  
  
***  
  
Kirby, the hero of the planet Pop Star, strolled through the forest that bordered his house in the Green Greens region of Dream Land. Mischevious and malevolent creatures liked to try and ambush him at his home, so he'd decided to be more proactive.  
  
A few minutes into his patrol, he saw something he'd never seen in Green Greens before. Leaning against a tree was an odd object. It was a circular disk, broken into four pieces and red. Always eager to learn new adaptations he could make to himself, he inhaled the disk with his mightly lungs.  
  
And promptly vanished.  
  
***  
  
"Is it just me, or is it a bit warmer today?" asked Popo.  
  
"It's just you," replied his partner and girlfriend Nana. "Look--Nitpicker, two o'clock."  
  
The couple, who jointly referred to themselves as the Ice Climbers, were making yet another excursion onto Icicle Mountain, part of the so-called Infinite Glacier. A mysterious condor was littering the mountain with seemingly innumerable, equally mysterious vegetables, and the duo was making a killing collecting them and reselling them.  
  
Of course, the job did have its hazards.  
  
Popo and Nana quickly leapt to a higher ledge, so as to avoid the predatory bird of the species Nitpicker. It quickly swept up to them, but they smacked it with their ice-breaking mallets and caused it to plummet into the depths. They high-fived one another, then saw that there was a strange item on the ledge with them, one they'd missed before.  
  
"What's that?" Nana wondered.  
  
"Doesn't look like any vegetable I've ever seen," Popo said. In fact, it was a circle split into four pieces, and blood-red.  
  
The duo began to pick it up. However, they disappeared, leaving the wildlife of Icicle Mountain alone again. 


	4. Arrival

Behold, if you will, the Final Destination.  
  
It hovers in the Null. It is an octagonal platform of a purplish color. Bisecting the platform is something that looks like an airplane runway, though it is difficult to imagine what kind of preternatural aircraft from the imagination of H.P. Lovecraft would land here. There was also an odd sort of transparent lightning bolt design.  
  
Attached to the bottom of the platform were several odd prongs that surrounded a black orb, which resembled a dark sun. From the bottom of the orb, a thin ray of white light extended as far as the eye could see.  
  
And in the Null, some of the eyes can see a very long ways indeed.  
  
In the middle of the Final Destination, almost a score of figures appeared. Most of them were strangers, but some of them recognized each other.  
  
"Bowser! What are you pulling this time?" yelled Mario as he espied his nemesis in the crowd.  
  
"Don't try that with me, plumber boy!" the King of the Koopas retorted. "You're responsible for this and you know it!" The two approached each other and began to snarl, but before they could exchange blows, the shimmering blade of a sword was lowered inbetween them.  
  
"There's no need to fight," said the sword's wielder, a young man dressed in green with pointy ears. "We should try and figure out how to get out of here."  
  
"I'm only mildly impressed by your attempt at diplomacy, Link," muttered a graceful looking young lady, "Seeing as how you needed your sword."  
  
"Excuuuuuuse me, princess."  
  
Perhaps recognizing in one another kindred spirits, Fox, Samus, and Captain Falcon looked at one another and shook their heads.  
  
"None of you shall be leaving until I so wish it."  
  
The voice was loud and deep. It gave a sense of command and authority, and above all else, power. Oh yes...power.  
  
The group whirled as one. Suspended in the air behind them was a large white glove. "What the--?!" everyone began, though not everyone stopped there.  
  
"Allow me to introduce myself. Although I have no true name as you mortals would understand it, you may call me the Master Hand, for that describes me as well as any moniker could." The self-described Master Hand seemed to have no discernible mouth. This worried them.  
  
"Why have you brought us here?" asked Peach, stepping forward a bit.  
  
"For one purpose. So that you may battle one another. I have grown bored, and so you shall entertain me."  
  
"And what makes you think we'll cooperate?"  
  
The glove snapped its fingers. Pictures (or were they windows in space-time?) appeared next to it. "Behold. Your residences. The Mushroom Kingdom. The Koopa Kingdom. Hyrule. The Galactic Federation. Internova. Eagleland. The Lylat System. Pop Star. Kanto. The Infinite Glacier. DK Island. Yoshi's Island. If you do not choose to cooperate, then I shall devastate these charming locales, and destroy all living beings in them. And I have the power to do so; of this there is no doubt. If any of you choose not to fight, speak up now."  
  
There was a pause. None of them said a word, not even Pikachu.  
  
"Excellent. Now...I shall explain the rules." 


	5. The First Fight

"You shall all fight separately," the Master Hand continued, "With the exception of the Ice Climbers, who do not have sufficient experience fighting alone. They shall thus be allowed to join their forces." Popo and Nana shot quick glances of relief at one another.  
  
"You shall fight in arenas of my own creation, which shall be based on locations from your homelands. However, they will not be exact duplicates. Some of the geography shall have changed, and I may throw in extra hazards to make the fights more interesting." The glove laughed, a long deep laugh that chilled even Bowser.  
  
"Also, at random I shall materialize items into the arena that can be used to aid a combatant. A few of you may recognize some of the items, while some none of you will have seen before. As to what each of them can do, I'll let you find out on your own."  
  
"What are we fighting to?" asked Fox. "To the death, or just the defeat?"  
  
"I have no wish for you to die. Then I'd have to fetch replacement warriors, which would be irritating. The fights will work like this: When I place you in the arenas, I will designate boundaries in each. They will be easily recognizable. The goal of the fight is to throw your opponent or opponents beyond the boundaries. When someone goes beyond, they are KO'd. When there is only one combatant left standing, they are declared the winner and the fight is over. Now, just a few last things to take care of."  
  
The Master Hand snapped its fingers again, and Fox, Samus, and Link suddenly began to float, until they were only a few inches from the glove itself.  
  
"Because the non-lethal rule is in effect, each of you requires an adjustment to your weapons. Fox McCloud, your blaster and the experimental weaponry from the Cornerian Armed Forces will not kill, only wound. Samus Aran, the same is true of your Charge Shot and missiles. As well as of your Master Sword, Link. I shall restore them all to their normal state when the fights are all concluded and I allow you to return home."  
  
"When's that gonna be, huh?" Bowser asked, snarling as the three warriors were lowered back to the Final Destination. "If I don't get back soon, my kids are gonna ruin my kingdom!"  
  
"Have no fear. I shall return you to the exact point in time you left."  
  
"But how long are we gonna BE here?"  
  
If the Master Hand had possessed a mouth, it surely would have been grinning nastily. "As long as I wish."  
  
"No one treats the King of the Koopas that way!"  
  
"No one save me. And now, it is time to choose the combatants for the first fight." A beam of white light erupted from its index finger and fell on Mario, much like a spotlight. Then it moved to Bowser. It moved from fighter to fighter at high speeds, seemingly random. After a while, it began to slow down. Finally, it stopped.  
  
"The first fighter is Princess Peach Toadstool!" announced the glove, which used its mysterious powers to lift her into the air. The 'spotlight' went through the process again.  
  
"The second fighter is Donkey Kong!" The ape was hoisted alongside her.  
  
"And the location of the fight shall be...Onett!" Ness gasped. Beside the Hand, another picture (or is it another window in space-time?) appeared, displaying the field of battle. Peach and Donkey Kong disappeared.  
  
"Now, let us watch the battle..."  
  
***  
  
The two materialized in Onett. Looking around, they saw what appeared to be a small suburban town, with houses painted bright pastel colors (two of which they were currently inbetween). There were trees dotting the paved streets, and poles with flags stretched between them. The perfect picture of a quiet little town.  
  
It also looked like the perfect setting for a Stephen King novel, though of course neither of them knew anything about American authors.  
  
Fifty feet above them, in the sky, was a horizontal red line that stretched as far as the eye could see. And about fifty feet away on either side of them, were vertical red lines. The boundaries.  
  
"Guess we'd better do this," said Donkey Kong, wishing he had a banana or twenty to eat to get his energy up.  
  
"Guess so," agreed Peach, silently registering her amazement that the ape could talk. "Good luck."  
  
"You too." He hurled himself at her, but the princess simply leaped into the air and kicked him in the face with a high-heeled foot on her way down. Remembering the self-defense lessons Mario had given her, she took the offensive, throwing three lightning-fast punches at the gorilla's midsection before he could react.  
  
When he DID react, he grabbed her with his massive hands and hurled her onto the rooftop of one of the houses, knocking the wind out of her. Using his powerful leg muscles, Donkey Kong leapt up after her, but Peach dropped back to the ground, rolling when she hit.  
  
She couldn't play his game and expect to win, she realized. Her quickness wouldn't balance out his superior strength.  
  
She'd have to use magic.  
  
Before her opponent could react, she utilized a spell that had been inspired by her visit to Subcon several years ago. She placed her hand a few inches above the ground. A tuft of grass appeared. She pulled on it, and yanked out of the ground a large turnip wearing a smiley face expression.  
  
"Ok," said Donkey Kong from the rooftop, "I'll admit that's new. What're you gonna do with that thing?"  
  
"This!"  
  
She threw the turnip straight up with all of her might. It slammed into the ape's head, causing him to lose his balance and fall. Peach was there when he landed, delivering a kick to the back of his head. Blinking away the stars that had suddenly appeared, Donkey Kong stood up and delivered a powerful punch, one that knocked the princess back several feet and into the wall of one of the houses.  
  
As she rose and wiped the dirt off her face, they both heard a small 'ting' noise, the kind made in movies when light reflects off of the hero's perfectly white teeth.  
  
Something had materialized on top of one of the trees. It was a small metal cylinder, with a small pink blade sticking out of it.  
  
One of the items the Master Hand had mentioned.  
  
The two warriors cast sideways glances at one another, then began a desperate race. Donkey Kong jumped onto the top of the nearest house. Peach merely leapt into the air and used another magical ability to hover over to the tree in a jiffy, snagging the sword. As she did so, the blade extended by a foot.  
  
She dropped off the tree to engage the ape, swinging the blade as she fell. A panicked Donkey Kong hurriedly got out of her way as she advanced, twirling the sword with every step, leaving trails of light in the air; as a princess, she had of course practiced with swords before.  
  
By now, Donkey Kong had climbed to the top of one of the telephone poles. And Peach formed a plan.  
  
She hovered to the roof nearest him, and began to cut at the pole with her blade, carving out huge chunks of wood. Realizing it would soon collapse, Donkey Kong dropped down to attack. In one fluid motion, she hurled the blade away, grabbed the falling ape, and threw him, adding his own momentum to the throw.  
  
Threw him behind her. Beyond the boundary.  
  
Donkey Kong vanished in a huge blast of light and stars.  
  
***  
  
"And the winner is Princess Peach Toadstool!" 


End file.
